Tell Me a Secret
by country music freak
Summary: Matt Casey came from an abused background. On a routine call to a burning apartment building, he runs into a girl in the same situation he was in growing up. Can he find a way to save this girl, or is she going to be lost forever? I don't own Chicago Fire or any characters you recognize, no matter how much I want to. It belongs to NBC.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

Matt stared at his dad, wondering what he would do to him next. Ever since he lost his job, his dad had been drinking heavily. Matt tried to protect his mom and sister, but he couldn't be everywhere at once. He tried to bring home enough money to pay for the immediate needs of the family, but there weren't a lot of jobs a ten year old could do that would be worth enough money. Not that his family saw any of it in a good way. All of Matt's money went to his father and his drinking.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? A little boy trying to be all grown up?" Matt hated the sound of his father's voice. The way it was oily and made him want to shudder. It seemed to even _sound_ like he had been drinking, which, of course, he had been.

"N-no, Daddy. I was just coming back from my paper route. Jimmy has one and said that he loved it. I wanted to see if it was as fun as he said it was," Matt lied through his teeth. However, lucky for him, his dad was drunk as a skunk and would probably believe him if he said he was purple with yellow polka dots.

"Well, boy? Is it? As fun as he said?" Matt made no move to answer and instead hung his head. Matt knew the punishment for "back-talking" as his father put it, or "holding a conversation" as the rest of the human population put it. When Matt didn't answer, his dad threw the bottle of beer he was holding and managed to hit Matt in the face. The glass cut his skin and the alcohol burned in his cuts. He could only hope that it wouldn't scar too much.

Matt's dad then stalked closer to Matt, invading his space. Matt knew what this meant. He was about to get the beating of his young life.

Matt didn't even have time to duck out of the way of his father's fist before it struck him in the temple. Pain flared and Matt fell to the floor.

"You think you're so much better than me? Huh? Is that what you think, you worthless piece of shit? I'll teach you to think you are better than your elders!" Each sentence was punctuated with the pain of another fist connecting with his head or a foot to the stomach. Matt was, for the first time in his life, scared that his father would go too far and he wouldn't be able to heal from this. All Matt wanted to do when he grew up was be a firefighter. But at the rate things were going, he wouldn't even be able to see his next birthday.

**25 years later...**

"Bitch, get your lazy ass over here! NOW!" Elisabeth shuddered as she heard her father calling for her. _Why can't I just have a normal life?_ She thought as she trudged out of her bedroom, her sanctuary, towards the living room where her father was waiting impatiently for her.

"Yes, Father? How can I help you?" Elisabeth tried her hardest to keep the sarcasm out of her voice and prayed that her father didn't hear it. Life was already bad enough without the extra beatings that "insolence" would bring. She still hadn't recovered from the last one, she could still feel his hands all over her and could feel his weight pressing down on her, breaking bones and tearing her soul to pieces.

"What have I told you about having dinner ready for me when I came home? Hm? I work my ass off every day in order to put food in our pantry and you repay me by not cooking it? Your mother would be ashamed," he said. That got Elisabeth's blood boiling. How _dare_ he talk about her mother like that? The one person in the world who listened to her. The one **he **killed. Because of him, Elisabeth was stuck here for another twelve years. She couldn't wait to leave this Hell. The neighbors all knew what was going on and tried to help, only they couldn't do much.

Whenever Elisabeth's father tried to sell her to customers, the people around them would pay to have Elisabeth for a night, or a weekend. That was the only time she could reliably get food. She could relax and not worry about getting beaten for sitting. Not that she was ever completely comfortable, of course. Elisabeth still wouldn't let anyone near her, but it was still nice to be able to sit down on a couch.

*****Time Skip*****

Elisabeth was cooking dinner for her father when he unexpectedly came through the front door, staggering around. She could tell that he had hit the hard stuff and wasn't about to stop just because he was home. That simply meant that he expected Elisabeth to wait on his every need, before he said it. The nights he got this hammered were the nights that were usually very painful for Elisabeth.

"Come give your father some sugar, sugar," he slurred. Knowing the consequences for disobeying, Elisabeth slowly walked over to where her father slouched, not even making it to the couch. Her father grabbed her wrists and yanked. Elisabeth was pulled off balance and fell right into her father's lap. She struggled to get away, but even drunk, he was more than a match for a six year old girl. She gasped as he grabbed her butt and wouldn't let go.

"Father, I need to go check on your dinner. It's in the oven. You don't want it to burn, do you?" Elisabeth asked, hoping that he would let her go.

"Bitch, when I want you to go, I will let you go. Fine. If you're so worried about my meal, let's just go see how it's doing," he pulled Elisabeth along and shoved her face into the oven door. "Well? Is it done enough? Not burnt, is it? Huh?" He shoved her face into the oven door even more and wouldn't let up for minutes.

The pain was excruciating. Elisabeth felt like her face was on fire, which it kinda was. She couldn't help the screams of agony that tore from her throat as her father refused to let up on the pressure. Elisabeth was sure something was going to break before he let her up.

It was then that Elisabeth decided to stop talking. He wouldn't get any more pleasure out of her screams.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Elisabeth rose with the sun, hoping to stave off disaster by having breakfast ready before her father woke up. Usually he didn't wake up until noon or later, courtesy of the previous night's drinking, but every once in a while, he would wake up early and punish her for not serving him.

Elisabeth washed her face and brushed her teeth before scurrying into the kitchen of their apartment. She quickly gathered all the ingredients she would need in order to make the eggs, bacon, and pancake breakfast that usually put her father in a good mood. He had visited her bed last night, so Elisabeth was doing everything she could to keep her father happy and not be punished.

So far, Elisabeth was doing everything right. She had just set the plate of food down on the table when her father stumbled out of his room, eyes half closed and mumbling under his breath about not drinking so much the next time he went out with his friends. Elisabeth knew that he would never stop drinking so much, but it made her father feel better to be able to tell himself that.

"So, girl, I guess I have taught you something. Well, it was more than your worthless mother ever taught you. Too bad she couldn't have killed you before she died," Elisabeth's blood boiled, but she kept quiet, just like she has for the last three years.

Her father enjoyed trying to get Elisabeth to break her silence, but every time it go too bad, she would just think about her mother and how she needed to be able to get vengeance for her death. With those thoughts in mind, Elisabeth just grit her teeth and stepped away from the table.

"Hey, slut, go get ready for school. Gotta keep up appearances, and all that shit," Elisabeth's father spat. Ah, school. Yet another place she wasn't safe. The bullies seemed to be able to hone in on people who already have enough shit to deal with. Seriously, why can't bullies pick targets who can talk to their parents about what's going on and have people who care about them? Oh, well. She better stop complaining or she really would be late.

Elisabeth hurried out the front door, but not before silently asking her father to drop dead.

*********Matt POV*********

Matt woke up in the morning feeling the lingering pain that years of abuse caused. Every morning, Matt would feel phantom pains shooting through his body, which made it extremely difficult for him to want to get out of bed and go to work. 

Matt loved his job. He got to save people from car crashes, burning buildings, or other weird emergencies. Most people, Matt knew, were scared to run into a burning building, but because he grew up believing that he was worthless and unloved, Matt had no reservations about his own safety. No matter how each call ended, he knew that he made a difference in at least one person's life. That was all Matt wanted to do after his childhood.

_Flashback_

"_Hey, Matty-boy. How's my favorite little whore today?" Matt's father asked him as he slipped into Matt's bed. Matt knew what was coming. His father had been slipping into his bed with him after he finished with his mother for the past three years. He knew what was expected. _

"_Please, don't, Dad. Please. Leave me alone. LEAVE ME ALONE!" Matt knew that his father got off on Matt's pleas, but he couldn't help himself. What seven year old boy could? _

_The pain Matt felt when his father impaled him was nothing compared to the shame and disgust he felt at both himself and his father. Why did he have to be the one who suffered? Why couldn't he just be loved?_

_Ten minutes passed and Matt's father reached his completion. "See, boy, wasn't that fulfilling? Knowing that you made your daddy feel good? Doesn't that make you feel like you finally did something worthwhile? Huh? Does it?" Matt didn't answer, but instead pressed his face into his pillow, tears streaming silently down his face. "Boy, answer me! Now!" Matt still didn't answer, knowing that nothing he said would make a lick of difference._

_The pain that came from his father punching and kicking him was almost a welcome one. A sharp contrast to the burning pain in his butt. _

_End flashback_

Matt shook his head, trying to get rid of the memories that haunted him. He knew that there was no way they'd all go away completely, but there was no point in dwelling over them, either. He just wanted to forget. The abuse would always be a part of him, but that didn't mean he had to relive every detail of what was done to him, did it?

*******Time Skip*******

Matt was laying in the bed in his quarters at the firehouse thinking about his past. He did this every few days, trying to figure out why some people got pleasure out of hurting others. Slowly, Matt started nodding off, only to be jerked awake by the ringing sound of the alarm that told him that there was another fire or accident that he needed to go to.

Matt pushed himself off his bed and briskly walked towards the truck. He passed Gabby and gave her a nod. They used to be a couple, but it got to be too much for Matt to be able to handle. He always feared that he would end up like the only male influence in his life and start beating the people who he should've loved the most, so he broke it off with Gabby. Thankfully, she understood his reasoning when he explain it to her and tried to help Matt where she could.

Gabby nodded back and they both hurried to their vehicles. When Matt jumped on board, his crew were already all there, so they left. Pulling out of the station, Matt's mind went back to the call. He wondered what the situation was and started going through ways that his team could help.

Truck 81 was a general truck. They put out fires, got people out of cars, and helped the medics on occasion, when it was needed. Some people say that Squad was the hardest job, but Matt disagreed. Squad knew that every time they got called that they would need to do some sort of rescue. Truck 81 had no such insurance. They were an all-purpose team that went where they were needed.

When they arrived at the site, it turned out to be a burning apartment building. Matt sighed and groaned at the same time along with every other responder there. Apartment fires, along with hospitals, had to be the worst ones. There were just so many more people that had to be accounted for and helped. Not that he minded doing it, but it got overwhelming sometimes and as Lieutenant, Matt couldn't afford to get overwhelmed and potentially make a decision that could get one of his people hurt.

Matt took a deep breath to calm himself before getting out of the truck and putting up his "I-am-so-confident-nothing-can-shake-me" facade. He couldn't allow any firefighters or rescued people to see him shaken and anything less than fully confident.

He strode up to one of the police officers who had been the first one on the scene. "How many people are in the building?" The officer just looked over at Matt with a haunted look in his eyes. It must've been his first fire.

"Um, there are about forty to fifty people in the building today?"

"Which is it? Forty or fifty? I don't want to leave anyone inside because I didn't know they were in there," Matt knew he was being hard on the green officer, but he wanted to press the point home that they needed accurate numbers in order to operate at their best.

The officer walked away, presumably to find out how many people were in the building. Matt glanced over to his right and saw a man who looked to be the building's security guard heading towards him. Matt went to meet him halfway and asked the man, "Do you happen to know how many people are in the building right now that didn't make it out?"

The guard just looked scared and said, "Only one person I can think of. A girl. She's about nine, I think. And watch out for her, man. Something doesn't sit right about her with me. I think there's something going on in that apartment, so just, watch out,"

"Thanks, man. Is she the only one left?" Matt was already dreading what he would find in that apartment. His mind was filling in the details of what wasn't "right" about her, and he hoped to God that he was wrong.

"Yeah. I got a head count. Every one but her is out. She's floor six, room 607. Her dad is right over there if you, ya know, need to ask him something. It's a sick man who would leave his daughter in a burning building to run to safety himself. I hope nothing happens to that little girl. She seems so small," That last part was said so softly that Matt wasn't sure if it was meant for him to know, or if the guard was just saying it. Either way, Matt wasn't sure if he wanted to know.

Taking a deep breath, Matt turned away from the guard and told his team what he knew, "We got one girl. Age nine. Floor 6, room 607. And guys? Be careful. She may not be the most . . . trusting child," Matt knew his team knew what he meant. There was a possible case of abuse.

Otis, called that because he worked the ladder, like the elevator company, hesitantly started to say, "Um, Lieutenant? Maybe you should, you know?"

"No, Otis. I don't know. Please enlighten me," Matt couldn't help but retort back. Everyone in Firehouse 51 knew of his reluctance to speak about his childhood. And the reasons why.

"Maybe you should take point on this one. You seem to do well with children who come from questionable backgrounds. Maybe you could get this girl to trust you better than one of us could," Otis bravely continued his train of thought.

"Maybe you have a point, Otis. Okay guys, change of plans. I go in, with two of you as back up. You stay ten, fifteen feet behind me at all times. I get the girl, and you follow us out. No touching, and only speak when necessary. We don't know what she's been through. At this point, anything can trigger a flashback, and trust me. We don't want to deal with that while trying to get her out," Matt quickly took control and revamped the plans that they usually followed for situations like this. "Let's do this,"

********Elisabeth's POV********

When Elisabeth got home from school, her father was waiting for her by the door.

"Girl, when I say get home from school immediately, I mean immediately. I don't like this lolly-gagging you do when I'm not around to keep you in check. Maybe I should keep you home from school from now on. Home school you, ya know? Keep an eye on what you're learning. You can never be sure what a public education is going to give you, after all," Her father swayed, obviously drunk, and Elisabeth was surprised her father's speech wasn't slurred.

_I did come straight home, bastard. It's not my fault that you enrolled me in a school all the way on the other side of the city. And then refuse to drive me, _Elisabeth thought. She hadn't spoken in three years, and her father knew that. However, he delighted in asking her an open ended question and punishing her when she didn't answer. There was nothing Elisabeth could do about it, so she just tried to make herself as small as possible when this happened. There was the first shock of pain that always accompanied the beginning of a beating, but then Elisabeth went to her "happy place". Elisabeth created a place where she was happy and spoke. Her mother was alive and her father either dead or in jail, but not in her life. She could wear shorts and a tank top and laugh and be free.

When her father finished beating her, he sent Elisabeth to start on his dinner. Elisabeth was used to orders like this, the ones where she would cook but was not allowed to eat what she cooked. However, her father had gotten a little slap happy and the food was barely on the stove when she passed out from her injuries. What no one realized was that there was a towel on the stove top, right near the burner that was being used.

The next thing Elisabeth knew was that she was staring into the caring blue eyes of a stranger. She almost screamed, only her intense self discipline kept her from making a sound. The man took his mask off and put it over her face. Elisabeth started to fight the man. Who knew what he was going to do to her?

"It's okay. My name is Matt. I'm with the CFD. The fire department. Your apartment caught fire. Is it okay if I pick you up?" Elisabeth's eyes widened. Someone was asking her for permission. She shakily nodded her head. She wasn't stupid and could see the flames behind Matt. "Okay, ready? Here we go," and Matt picked her up. Elisabeth passed out again, and knew no more.

**A/N: I am so sorry about the wait. It's been crazy. I found out that my uncle has lung cancer, I have the ACT in a couple days and I've been studying like crazy, and my computer died. The battery was so drained that it literally couldn't pass a current through it. That means that even if it was plugged in, my computer couldn't charge. I promise, it will never take me that long to post an update again. Everything is going a little smoother now, and I will try to get another update done by Memorial Day. Thanks for sticking with me. **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 2

Matt lifted the girl into his arms and let out a sigh of relief mingled with concern. On one hand, she wasn't feeling the pain that she had to be in, but on the other hand, who knew what happened. Passing out could cause her to fall into a coma and with how light she was, and how scared, it probably could lead to a coma she wouldn't wake up from.

Matt shook his head. He had to focus and get the girl, and himself, to safety. Cradling the girl to his chest, Matt started back towards the front door. He was almost at the door when a part of the ceiling fell down right in front of him and would've crushed him, if not for his foot getting stuck on something he couldn't make out.

Knowing he was getting short on time, Matt looked around, hoping to find an alternative exit that was safer. He spotted a window not too far from where he was.

_*KSHH* This is Matt. I need the ladder on the Northwest side of the building, sixth floor. I have an unconscious girl with unknown injuries. Over. *KSHH* _Matt radioed in to let Otis know that his expertise was needed with the ladder.

Matt saw the ladder making its way over to the window he said, and was about to start heading over to it when the floor broke under Matt's right foot.

"Fucking A. Of course. Take a deep breath. Calm down. You are in control," Matt was muttering to himself, trying to figure out a way to get out of this situation and keep the girl safe. The only thing Matt could think to do was to put the girl down and lift himself out of the hole, but that introduced some new problems. What if the floor broke when he was pressing down on it with his hands? What if he put the girl down and couldn't get her up again? What if he died and caused the little girl to die with him?

No. He could handle this. He was Matt Casey and he was doing what he did the best. With those thoughts in his head, Matt set the girl down and went about trying to get himself up with the least amount of pain possible. Matt tested the wood around him for stability and found a couple spots that seemed to be strong enough to support his weight while he heaved himself up.

Levering himself out of the hole was the first task. While he was figuring out what to do, some more beams had fallen between him and the window. Matt could see Otis looking around for him and could tell the exact moment that he was spotted. Otis turned around and called immediately for help.

********Otis POV********

Looking inside, Otis could see the apartment literally falling down. One thing that bothered Otis, though, was that Matt wasn't by the window. Otis started to search for his missing Lieutenant and spotted him with his foot and half his leg stuck in the floor. Otis spun around and called down the the men, "Hey, guys. Casey's stuck in the floor and he has a girl with him. Unconscious, unknown injuries. I need you guys to get him out of there. The building is falling down around them as we speak."

These words caused a flurry of activity on the ground since no one wanted to lose one of their own or a child. Steadily Otis led the ladder to the open window and controlled it to gently place the edge of the ladder just inside of the window, so that Matt could get on it and walk across to the truck with the girl. But it also served to help the others get to the window so they could help Matt out with the girl.

********Matt POV********

Matt watched as he saw some of his men climb through the window with the seriousness and a surprising gentleness. He knew that he was going to have to explain why they couldn't carry the girl, but first, he needed to get out of this infernal hole he was stuck in. Making a plan of action, Matt lowered his arms so that the girl was still in them and pushed himself up using his forearms.

Climbing to his feet, some of the men tried to get Matt to hand the girl over, but he refused. He wouldn't allow this scared and very hurt girl to go with people she didn't know. She would only be more scared when she woke up than she would be if he stayed with her. He shook his head, signaling that he was to be the one to stay with the girl.

Matt carried her over to the window and slowly climbed out on to the ladder, making sure to keep hold with one hand.

Once on the ground again, Matt carried the girl over to Gabby to look over. When she laid eyes on his precious passenger, she immediately snapped into professional mode and started to instruct everyone who could help on what to do.

********Gabby POV********

Gabby couldn't believe what she was seeing. Yes, she had seen Matt with kids before, but never had he ever had such a look on his face as with this girl. She knew immediately that this girl would become a fixture in Matt's life, and oddly enough, she was okay with it. She wasn't jealous, but concerned for the girl.

"Okay, Matt. I know you want to stay with her, so what I want you to do is sit down on the gurney and lay the girl on top of your chest. Shay, I want you to get the hospital on the line and let them know that we're coming. I have a feeling that what they find when they clean her up is not going to be pretty. Matt, anything to add?"

"Call Social Services. I have a . . . feeling that they will be needed. Chief, will you let me go with Dawson and Shay?" Matt couldn't, Gabby noticed, keep the fear, concern, and compassion from his voice, and was pretty sure that Chief Boden could hear it too.

"That's fine. Stay with her. She may know what started the fire. And Matt? I'm proud of you," Matt's face showed all the shock that he could under all the soot and pain he was in.

"Yes, sir. I will find out everything I can,"

"I have no doubt of it, Lieutenant. Stay in touch. We'll be there as soon as we can,"

"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH MY DAUGHTER? I DIDN'T SAY YOU CAN TAKE HER TO THE HOSPITAL. NOT ALL OF US COMMON FOLK CAN AFFORD IT, YA KNOW?!" The belligerent man came up to Boden and tried to get in his face.

"Sir, your daughter needs medical help. I'm sure there is a way to get the money situation under control if it's needed. Now please step back. We have reason to believe you shouldn't be near here," Boden was trying to be nice. Anyone with eyes could see that he clearly wanted the drunk man away from him and was trying his hardest to not get violent. However, the man didn't seem to have working eyes. He just kept up yelling and got into the Chief's face.

"UNDER CONTROL?! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, TELLING ME ABOUT MY OWN FINANCIAL SITUATION? YOU DON'T KNOW SHIT ABOUT ME!" The man just wouldn't stop. It was like he wanted to get put on his ass.

"Okay, Shay. We can't stay here and listen to this. We need to get this girl to a hospital ten minutes ago. Casey! We're moving out. Hold her tight. If I need to give an injection, I don't want her bouncing around, you hear me?" Gabby looked over to Matt. She could see the determination and devotion in his eyes and knew that he wouldn't let anything happen to this girl.

"Yeah, Dawson. Let's roll out," Matt said, and Shay closed the doors and went to the front, got in, turned the sirens on, and sped out as fast as she could to the nearest hospital. A little girl's life was at stake.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 3

**A/N: I know nothing about medicine. Everything I say is completely made up and could be a total impossibility. Just letting you guys know.**

********Elisabeth POV********

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

The high pitched beeping of a machine close to her ear was what woke Elisabeth up. She couldn't feel much of anything, so she figured she must be on some sort of pain medications. Usually she was always in pain.

Elisabeth tried to open her eyes, knowing that she was infinitely more vulnerable when she couldn't see what was about to happen, but she couldn't seem to be able to manage it. Shaking her head from side to side, Elisabeth attempted to see if she could discern what was going on in the room and who was with her.

"Shh. . .It's okay. Try not to move. Calm down. I called the doctor and he should be here shortly," A male voice said off to Elisabeth's right. However, that only caused Elisabeth to become even more frantic and she tried to get away from the voice. Male means pain, doctors mean pain, laying on a bed means pain. Elisabeth figured she was in for three times the amount of pain as a usual beating. While thrashing around, Elisabeth heard someone walk into the room and became deathly still.

"Uh, Doc, I think maybe you should introduce yourself before you cause your patient to go further into a panic attack," Elisabeth heard the first voice say. That was odd. Most people didn't make much of an effort to help calm her down, but this stranger was fighting to help make her comfortable and to help understand what was going on. It was a novel experience for Elisabeth. She calmed down slowly, innately trusting that the first voice was going to be the one to protect her.

"Oh, of course. My apologies. My name is Doctor Maxwell Lovell. You can call me Max or Doc L. I will be your main attending physician while you stay with us," A gentle voice sounded from the door way. Elisabeth scooted over as much as she could towards the far side of her bed, closer to the first voice.

"Sh, shh. . .You're okay. Shhh..." the man slowly stepped closer to Elisabeth and she shot her eyes over to watch him. Slowly, he raised his hand and brought it within inches of her head and left it there, letting Elisabeth make the decision to let him rest his hand on her head.

Elisabeth eyed the man's hand, but lent her head minutely in his direction, giving him silent approval. The man lightly rested his hand on Elisabeth's head and he started to gently rub circles on it.

Elisabeth had no idea what was going on. Never before had she ever had someone who cared enough about her or that she trusted enough to do this. She closed her eyes and made a purring noise, enjoyed the first comforting contact with a person she's ever had.

********Matt POV********

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

The steady sound of the heart rate monitor was the only indication to Matt that the little girl laying in the bed was still alive. Otherwise she was still and pale. A glance would show burns and bruises, but a closer look would show bags under her eyes and the almost permanent frown that was on her face.

Matt was growing concerned. He knew that it was better if he didn't get so attached to the girl, but something about her drew him in. Maybe it was the way she seemed to need an advocate, or maybe it was the way her situation seemed so familiar. He didn't know. He just wanted her to get better.

Matt noticed that the girl's eyes were starting to move under her eyelids, so he called for the doctor, hoping that he would get to the room in time to help the girl wake up. He wasn't sure if he was up for the task. But the more her eyes moved, the more it seemed like he was going to have to grow some balls and take the bull by the horns, though in this case, it was take the unconscious girl and wake her up.

The girl had her eyes open and was trying to shake her head to the side to find out where she was and what was going on.

"Shh. . .It's okay. Try not to move. Calm down. I called the doctor and he should be here shortly," Matt tried to get the girl to calm down before her heart rate and blood pressure went any higher. However, that only caused even more frantic writhing on the bed. Matt didn't know what to do or how to help.

Matt glanced up momentarily when he heard the doctor walk in. It was obvious to Matt that the girl had heard him too and it was making the situation worse when the doctor didn't say anything, "Uh, Doc, I think maybe you should introduce yourself before you cause your patient to go further into a panic attack," Matt couldn't help but think that if the doctor was so incompetent as to let a patient continue having a panic attack, maybe he should request a different doctor for the girl.

"Oh, of course. My apologies. My name is Doctor Maxwell Lovell. You can call me Max or Doc L. I will be your main attending physician while you stay with us," hearing him say that made Matt rethink his hasty decision to pull him as the girl's doctor.

The girl didn't know what to think. Panic was making her vitals go up so Matt hurried to reassure her, "Sh, shh. . .You're okay. Shhh..." Matt wanted so badly to be able to give her a hug in reassurance, but knew that that would be the opposite of helpful in this moment, so he just reached his hand until it was hovering a few inches from the girls head and waited for her to initiate contact, knowing that this was a huge step in the girl's recovery.

When Matt felt the girl's hair on his hand, he had to fight himself to keep from scaring her. However, he grinned fiercely and jumped with joy in his head. This, Matt knew, was one of the biggest steps that someone who has been abused can take. Trusting another person, especially someone bigger than them and unknown to them, letting a stranger touch one of the most vulnerable parts of your body, the implications were staggering for Matt. It had taken him nearly 4 months to be comfortable with even his foster parents, people who had done nothing but protect him and love him, to be able to initiate contact with only the barest of flinches.

Matt knew that if he was honest with himself, if he didn't know someone was coming up behind him, he still flinched from the unexpected contact. However, the girl seemed to be thriving on his contact, now that she had gotten used to it. The purring sounds coming from her were enough to make Matt want to do nothing but pick her up, take her home, and prove to her that not all men were assholes like her father. However, there were still some things that needed to be discussed before she could relax enough to sleep.

"Hey, honey. Can you answer some questions for me please?" Matt tried to cajole her into answering, but as soon as she heard his voice, she started to get uncomfortable. So Matt tried something that he knew would help, from experience, "Okay, I'll start. My name is Matt Casey. I'm a firefighter at Station 51. I like puppies and saving people. I'm going to tell you a secret now. Can you keep it to yourself?" Matt knew that the trust he was showing her would go both ways.

Seeing the girl nod, agreeing to keep his secret, he told her, "I was abused as a little boy. Nothing that I ever did was good enough, and sometimes, just sometimes, I still feel like my father was right. That there is no need for me to be alive and that I should just give up. But then I remember my foster parents and everybody at the Station who rely on me to make lifesaving decisions everyday, and I know then that my father is wrong. That I am needed," Matt couldn't believe how much he told this unknown girl. He had only meant to share the basics, not things that even his therapist didn't know about. He was beginning to regret opening his big mouth, sure that he ruined his only chance with the girl when she spoke,

"My name is Elisabeth."

**A/N: I am sooooo sorry about how long this took. It won't usually take this long, but some serious shit has happened. My uncle died months before he was expected to, so it was really sudden, my grandma fell and broke her hip, then she got some sort of infection/illness that the doctors are still trying to diagnose, and I got a job. So I was a little out of it, for a while. I want to thank all of you for sticking with me and not pushing me to write. All of my reviews have been awesome, and I hope you will continue to tell me how you feel about my story.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 4

*********Elisabeth POV********

"_Why did I just say that? I haven't spoken in years and all it takes is one guy, A GUY, and I break my enforced silence. Why couldn't I have held my tongue? Why? Why?" _Elisabeth's mind was going around in circles, trying to understand why she broke her self-imposed silence. She was about to turn her head away and start crying when she heard Matt speak.

"Why . . . Did you just . . . Well, I'll just ask one thing, yeah? Would you like to come home with me? I mean, I know it's kinda sudden, but I feel this connection with you and you make me want to help you . . ." Matt trailed off, suddenly looking unsure of himself. Elisabeth couldn't help but want to reassure him.

She tried several times to get words to come out of her mouth, but they seemed to get stuck in her throat, choking her. Matt seemed to understand and just waited, letting Elisabeth talk in her own time, not rushing her.

Elisabeth couldn't understand the feeling that was inside of her, selling up. Never before had she felt such safety and protection radiating from a single person. She knew that she would have to be extra good to make sure that she could stay with him. She didn't want to make Matt mad at her and send her away. So with her mind made up, Elisabeth swore to herself, fighting back a yawn, that she would do anything Matt asked of her, no matter her personal feelings on the matter.

*********Matt POV*********

When Matt heard the girl, Elisabeth as he now knew, speak, he understood what she just gave him. She gave him the power to destroy her. To someone not familiar with the psyche of an abused child, simply telling someone your name is no big deal. In fact, it's considered polite to tell others your name. But for abused children, telling someone your name could spell disaster if that person decided to follow up in their questions and found you, and your abuser. No, the girl telling Matt her name was a huge step. Almost as big as her speaking for the first time in years.

"Why . . . Did you just . . . Well, I'll just ask one thing, yeah? Would you like to come home with me? I mean, I know it's kinda sudden, but I feel this connection with you and you make me want to help you . . ." Matt suddenly couldn't go any further with what he was trying to say. How could he make such a girl understand that he meant no harm and only wanted what was best for her?

Matt noticed that Elisabeth seemed to want to speak to him, but didn't know quite how to make her voice do what she wanted it to do, so Matt settled in and let her go at her own rate, knowing that eventually the words would come out.

After what seemed like an eternity to Matt, the very words he was hoping to hear came out of that precious girl's mouth, "I'd like that very much,". Even knowing that it would scare her, Matt couldn't help but start jumping up and down.

He managed to contain it to just a few jumps before settling himself back in his seat and gently grabbing Elisabeth's hand.

"I just want you to know that you will never have to go back to that vile man again and that I promise to never hurt you." Matt knew that right now, all Elisabeth was hearing was empty words, but he promised himself that he would make sure that she knew he meant every word and that she would never have a reason to be scared again.

***********Elisabeth POV**************

She knew that she was putting herself out there. Never before had she ever done something like this, but she knew it was the right choice for her.

Elisabeth felt a connection with the nice firefighter, and when he shared his story with a girl like her, showing the trust he already had in her, she knew that she should go with him. Maybe she would finally be happy.

Just seeing the ecstatic look on Matt's face when she accepted made a ball of warmth spread from her chest and radiated out, all the way to the tips of her fingers and toes. She made someone happy, _she _did something right.

When Matt started jumping up and down, Elisabeth got overwhelmed. _Oh no! If he's this excited in the hospital, what's he going to be like at home, when he is comfortable?_ Elisabeth didn't even notice when she started referring to his house, a place she had never been, as home.

Home was such a foreign word to Elisabeth that when she did notice, almost five minutes later after Matt was telling her that she would be protected, mid yawn, her arms went limp. Thankfully they were resting on the hospital bed, so she was the only one who noticed. Could she ever consider Matt's house to be her home. There was a saying, 'home is where the heart is' and Elisabeth's heart, at the moment was with Matt.

Never before had she even come close to thinking about the apartment as her home, and within minutes of waking up, she was considering a stranger to be safer than her father.

Of course, it didn't take a lot to be safer than her father, but seldom has Elisabeth ever felt comfortable with anyone to tell them what was going on.

Elisabeth knew that many of the other tenants in her building suspected something of this sort was going on, but they could never prove anything.

"Um, Matt?" Elisabeth didn't want to interrupt what Matt was saying, but her curiosity was piqued.

"Yeah? What's up, buttercup?" Matt just rolled with it, and for that, Elisabeth was glad. She wouldn't have been able to take it if he brushed her off without listening to her.

"Oh, um, I was just wondering if there was, um, anyone else who, uh, lived with you?" Elisabeth needed to know if she needed to watch out for anyone else who lived with Matt. Just because he was nice didn't mean that a roommate would be nice too.

"Nope. Nada. Just you and me, Buttercup. You don't mind if I call you that, do you?" Matt was so cute, being all insecure like he was. Like he needed to be. Besides, Elisabeth had never had a nickname, much less one that was nice.

"No, that's fine. Do you know when I can go home?" Elisabeth hoped that she wasn't being too forward when she referred to his house as home.

"Oh, baby girl. Soon. I promise. Soon," and with those words in her head, Elisabeth drifted off into the healing sleep that she had been fighting since she woke up.

**A/N: Sorry for how long this took. I know I said that it would never be this long, but the computer that I was writing this story on fried. We took it to a computer fixer and they said that they would be lucky to recover anything from it, so I had to start over. I'm sharing a computer with my mom and I'm only allowed on it for school work, just so I don't "break it" (her words, not mine), and this was the first time that I could work on it. Plus I had marching band and golf after school and my math grade sucks right now. I'll try harder to update more frequently, but I make no promises. **


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 5

***********Matt POV************

Listening to Elisabeth call his house her home already, Matt couldn't keep the fierce grin off of his face. He's always wanted to have a family, but his past has kept him from it. The fear he felt when he thought of turning into his father kept him from having serious relationships in the past. So far, the only person who was willing to stick with Matt and work through his problems with him was Gabby.

_Speak of the Devil, and he shall appear. _Gabby knocked quietly on the door and peeked in. Seeing Elisabeth asleep, she walked in.

"Hey, Matt. How's the girl doing?"

For some reason, it really bothered Matt that Gabby had referred to Elisabeth as 'the girl'. She was so much more than that. "Her name is Elisabeth. And she's doing fine. Or at least, she will once I get her home."

If it hadn't been about such a serious topic, Matt would've laughed at the shocked look on Gabby's face. But knowing Gabby as he did, Matt braced himself for the tongue lashing that was sure to come.

And she didn't disappoint.

"Matt, are you sure about this? I mean, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but wasn't the reason you haven't had a real girlfriend before was because of your, you know, _fears? _I know you want to do right by this girl, sorry, Elisabeth," Gabby corrected herself at the look on Matt's face. "but I'm not sure that this is the right choice for you. Can you handle it?"

The only reason Matt listened throughout the whole speech was because he knew Gabby meant well. She had legitimate concerns and he respected that, but that didn't mean he had to take this sitting down.

"I think this is a good thing for me, or will be. This will force me to face my past instead of running from it. She needs someone who can relate to her on a personal level, not just someone who _thinks _they know what she went through."

"I know, Matt. Really, I do. But I don't think that the best time for you to face your past is when you are trying to help Elisabeth deal with her own. You will have nightmares, she will have nightmares, I just don't think this is the best way to go about this."

Matt didn't answer for a while, thinking through the conversation and weighing the pros and cons of taking Elisabeth in.

In his heart, Matt knew that taking her was the right thing, but in his brain, he knew that Gabby had some good points. Could he handle dealing with his own past as well as Elisabeth's?

Matt's musing was interrupted by Elisabeth in the throes of a nightmare. No, nightmare was too kind of a word for the tossing, turning, and flinching, along with some screams, that came from the broken girl. Night-terror was more appropriate.

Matt didn't have much knowledge on how to help someone come out of a night-terror. He only knew what he remembered from the few years his mom was still with him. Vaguely he could remember a lovely female voice singing, crooning to him. Telling him it would all be okay and that he was safe. Mom was here.

So Matt sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to crowd Elisabeth, and held her hand, not letting her go when she flinched back.

"Shhh…...Buttercup, you're okay. I'm still here and I am not going to let you go. You will get better and then you and I will go home and settled. I could even bring you in to the firehouse, if you wanted. I know the guys will be happy to see you. They always enjoy getting visits from people they save. It helps all of us to remember the good things, not the negative. But in our job, sometimes we need reminders that there is still some good and innocence in this world. We see too much ugly…" Matt drifted away at that point, unwilling to keep talking in case he moved too fast for Elisabeth.

Matt was knocked out of his thoughts when Elisabeth squeezed his hand. "Hey, Buttercup. Let me see your beautiful eyes...Ah, there they are. It's good to see you awake. Are you with me now?"

Elisabeth looked around, looking scarily like a spooked horse, just waiting for something to jump out and scare her.

******Elisabeth POV*******

Elisabeth looked around, disoriented. Where was she? There was a pressure on her hand. What was that?

Looking around, Elisabeth saw Matt sitting on the edge of her bed. Surprisingly enough, instead of feeling threatened and trapped, Elisabeth felt safe and protected. It was a completely new feeling for her. One she could get used to. It was a heady feeling.

Elisabeth looked around, making sure that no one else besides Matt was around. When she saw the coast was clear, she looked back at Matt.

"What...What are you doing?" The voice that asked was hesitant and unsure. It was a voice that Elisabeth didn't like hearing from herself. She always was a strong girl, and thought her voice should reflect that. But she would get there. Elisabeth was stubborn, and would get better to prove it.

Her bastard father couldn't keep her down. Not after everything he put her through. She would beat him.

**A/N: Hey, look guys! A fast update. Now, I wouldn't expect it too often, but I hope that this is a good pre-Thanksgiving surprise. My grades are starting to get pulled up, so I may have more time. But that is a very strong MAY. I hope you all have a good Turkey Day and don't forget to tell your family you love them. **


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 6

*********Matt POV********

Matt looked at Elisabeth. "Well, I'm looking at a beautiful young lady who has been thrown a lot of crap in life that she didn't deserve but continues to push past expectations and be amazing. But I'm also trying to show you that not every man is out to hurt you. Please, _please_ try to trust me."

Matt hoped that what he was saying wasn't going to scare Elisabeth away, but he couldn't emphasize enough that she would be safe with him. He decided to let her relax and think about what he said and give her a bit of quiet.

"Elisabeth? I have to go now, but I'll be back in a few hours, okay?" Elisabeth nodded, as if not sure what she was doing was acceptable.

********Elisabeth POV*************

_What was he trying to say? Did he actually _have _to go, or does he just want to get away from me? NO! He said that he wanted me. He has his own life, and I can't just expect him to drop everything for me. _Elisabeth couldn't shake the thoughts, but refused to let them overwhelm her. She would tackle this in a logical manner, like her mother.

She nodded, knowing that the man who seemed to be interested in her was waiting for acknowledgement. Elisabeth wasn't sure why Matt seemed so interested in her, but since he hasn't hurt her yet, she would go with her gut and trust the man . . . and hope that he didn't betray it. Matt seemed pleased with her response. If it was because she responded or if it was because it was the answer he wanted, Elisabeth didn't know.

********No POV*********

Back at the firehouse, everyone was buzzing. Matt was coming from the hospital with news on the girl. Everyone on the shift was hoping for good news. For some reason, they all felt drawn to that little girl who captured their lieutenant's heart.

Captain Boden was watching his crew from his office. He knew what was going on with Casey and the girl, but he wasn't sure where it would go. He didn't want to allow Casey to get too close to the girl, but wasn't sure what he could do to stop it.

He didn't want to, but thought that the two of them made something in his gut jump. He wasn't sure that the two of the together would make the best fit. Almost like a premonition. Boden was sure, but he knew that something bad was going to happen, and it was going to be centered around the girl and one of his best lieutenants.

Matt walked into the break room and was instantly bombarded with questions about Elisabeth.

"Is the girl alright?"

"Was that scumbag her father?"

"Is he really that horrible?"

"How is the girl?"

Matt laughed and held up his hands, "Calm down, guys. Her name is Elisabeth. She had some pretty serious injuries, but she'll be alright. Nothing that won't heal with time. Yes, that man was her father, and yes, he really is that awful."

Severide, the lieutenant of Squad 3, the rescue truck, stepped forward as the seeming spokesperson for the rest of the shift.

"What is going to happen to the girl, um, Elisabeth, now?"

Matt shrugged his shoulders, "I can only tell you what I want to happen. I know that I want her to stay with me. Her father, if you can even call him that, he's more like a sperm donor, abused her, blamed her for her mother's death. She hadn't spoken for years, when we rescued her."

Severide picked up on the past tense, "Hadn't?"

"Yeah, she was talking to me in the hospital room. Wouldn't answer the doctor or nurses, but she was speaking sentences to me." Matt shrugged his shoulders like it was an everyday occurrence to get mute children who were abused to speak again.

"Huh. Good job, man. Do you know when they are letting her out of prison - I mean, the hospital?" Otis was the one who asked. He had seen the girl in the building and knew that it was pretty bad. After all, he took care of his brother, didn't he?

"Thanks, Otis. Glad I can count on you. Have to show her us men-folk aren't as bad as her scumbag father." This pronouncement got a rowdy cheer of approval. These boys knew what happened to victims of abuse and victims of fires, nevermind combining the two in one small girl. They would do everything and use any resource to make sure that Elisabeth got a home with their lieutenant.

**********Elisabeth POV*************

When Matt came back, Elisabeth was vibrating on her bed, unable to contain her excitement. She had decided when Matt left that she wanted to live with him. The feelings he provoked in her were ones that she hadn't felt in years, if ever.

The protection that oozed from the man made Elisabeth feel warm inside and she wanted to feel that way a lot.

"Wow, someone seems to be in a good mood. What brought this on?" Elisabeth could tell that Matt was one part confused about her sudden change in behavior and one part happy that she was acting her age.

"Nothing. I just decided to grab life by the unicorn." Elisabeth said casually.

Matt nodded in understanding, but then realized what she had just said. "Unicorn?"

"Yeah. You know, all little girls love them, poop rainbows, have a HORN sticking out of their heads. Unicorns." Elisabeth mouthed off. She wasn't normally so cheeky, but couldn't help herself. After being quiet for so long, it felt nice to let loose the restraints she placed on herself and to be able to speak her mind. Sassy-ness included.

One thing was sure. Matt wasn't going to know what hit him.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 7

**********Matt POV***********

"Hiya, Matt! How are you today? Were you being serious about adopting me? I thought I should let you know that I am allergic to avocado, which is a shame because I love guacamole. Anyway, how are you? Oh, did I already ask that?" Matt was bombarded with questions when he stepped into the room.

Jokingly, Matt stepped back outside the room and studied the room number before coming back in.

"Hmmm, are you sure your name is Elisabeth? Do I have the right room?"

Elisabeth blushed and quickly quieted down. "Sorry, Matt. I was just excited. I never really had a family, ya know? Unless you don't want to be a family and just said that because you pity me. I don't need your pity. I can survive without you,"

"Woah, girl. Slow down. No, I didn't say that out of pity, I would love to be your family. I just meant that I was surprised you were talking so much. Or at all, no big deal." Matt tried to soothe the young girl, hoping he hadn't screwed up before even getting Elisabeth home.

"Oh," Elisabeth didn't look convinced and just sat there playing with the blankets in her hands, "sorry."

Shit. He did mess up. He would just have to fix it. "Seriously, Elisabeth. It's not a big deal. I love that you are comfortable enough with me to talk that much. It makes me feel loved, too." Matt wasn't sure that he should be sharing such intimate details with Elisabeth yet, but he felt that she would benefit from it. Letting her know that she wasn't alone in the world anymore.

"Yeah, okay. Hey, Matt? I'm kinda tired, is it okay for me to take a nap?" Elisabeth asked in a quiet voice.

"Sure, sweetie. I'll just go get your room ready at my house for when you are released. Maybe I'll bring a few of my friends with me when I visit. They've been asking me about you. They care about you just as much as I do."

********Elisabeth POV*********

Elisabeth didn't respond to Matt as he was leaving. She knew she shouldn't have been so talkative earlier. She just wanted to show Matt how much she appreciated and anticipated living with him instead of being shoved into an overstuffed government system and becoming just another statistic.

Elisabeth cried herself asleep, worrying over her placement with Matt.

_****Dream Sequence****_

_Elisabeth was running. She wasn't sure what she was running from, but she knew that it wasn't human. And it wanted to hurt her._

_Gasping, Elisabeth ran under a bush for cover as she tried to catch her breath. She didn't have much time. Calming her breath, Elisabeth reached her senses as far as she could in every direction._

SNAP!

_The sound of the branch breaking behind her scared Elisabeth so much she jumped in the air and spun, her hair whipping around her._

_Standing behind her was. . . something. It seemed vaguely humanoid, but the fact that it was burning blurred the lines and she wasn't quite sure. _

"_This is because of you, Elisabeth. You did this to me. Why? Why would you do this to me? All I wanted was to give you a good home. Why couldn't you save me?"_

_The figure reached his hand out toward Elisabeth. She tried to run, only to run straight into a tree that was behind her._

"_No, I didn't do anything! It wasn't my fault, I DIDN'T DO IT!"_

"_Exactly, you didn't DO ANYTHING!" The figure leapt towards her, hand reached out and almost grabbed her. It would've except the figure couldn't seem to move that quickly._

_Stumbling away from the figure, Elisabeth fell to the ground. The figure followed, shoving it's face into Elisabeth's._

"_Look at me. You did this. Why didn't you do anything?" The face, as it got closer, started to get discernible features. The more that was shown, the more Elisabeth started to deny what she saw. The features that were revealed were Matt's._

"_I tried! Please believe me! I tried," Elisabeth tried to get the burning man to understand. Then she heard something that didn't seem to fit the surroundings. . .her name._

"_Elisabeth. Elisabeth. Wake up. ELISABETH!"_

_****End Dream Sequence****_

"ELISABETH!" Matt shouted.

Elisabeth jumped awake, frantically searching the room for hidden dangers.

"Huh? What's going on?" Elisabeth was confused. Where was the fire man?

"Shh, sweetie. You just had a nightmare. Want to tell me about it?"

Elisabeth shook her head. She couldn't bear it if Matt realized what a mess she was and decided not to adopt her.

He couldn't know about any of her nightmares.

*******Matt POV*******

When Matt got back to Elisabeth's room, he heard muttering. Stepping closer to the bed he began to be able to make out the words.

"Didn't. . . Not my fault. . . Tried. . ." Unable to stand the thought that Elisabeth thought she was to blame for anything made his heart ache.

"Elisabeth. Elisabeth. Wake up. ELISABETH!" Matt really didn't want to shout, knowing how disorienting it was to be startled awake like that, but he needed to get Elisabeth out of her dream and shaking her awake was infinitely worse than shouting, as long as he kept his distance.

Watching Elisabeth get her bearings after waking, Matt felt a distant corner of his heart melt. How could anyone want to hurt such a child? Or any child? Matt swore to himself that he would do everything he could to help Elisabeth. Everything.

_**A/N:**_ _**Sorry for the long delay in posting. I'm not going to make excuses, I was just a little bored with the story, and I still have to share my mom's computer, so combining those together made me lose my muse. But lucky for you, children, I have gotten part of it sewn back and decided to post a chapter. Not really sure where this story is going to go, so if you want to post a review and give me ideas, I will take them into consideration. Not saying that it will make the story, but it definitely might influence what I write.**_


	9. Chapter 9

*****Matt POV******

As they walked into the townhouse, Matt watched Elisabeth from the corner of his eye, making sure that she was okay and wasn't freaking out too much.

She seemed wide eyed, taking everything in as quickly as possible. Matt's heart sunk when he saw her catalogue all the exits and places she could hide. While he understood that it was an automatic reaction to being in any new place, he couldn't help but wish that she trusted him enough to not have to look for places to hide.

"So. . .are you hungry? I have mac and cheese, uh, turkey, cereal. Can I get you anything?" Matt wanted Elisabeth to relax and felt she would do that better if he wasn't hovering over her and watching every move she made. Anything to make her feel better.

"Um, can I have a turkey and cheese sandwich, please?" She seemed hesitant to ask for anything, but Matt felt pride swelling in him at this piece of trust. Children who were abused, they don't usually ask for anything. It would only hurt them later. The fact that she trusted him enough to ask for something was amazing. Especially food.

Just to make sure that Elisabeth was encouraged to ask for things she needed, Matt immediately replied with an affirmative.

*******Elisabeth POV*******

Elisabeth wasn't sure that she was allowed to ask for food, whenever her father asked, she was beaten for thinking she was allowed to take food out of his mouth.

Happily, Matt went into the kitchen without another word, leaving Elisabeth alone with her thoughts.

_So far, so good. But how long can this last? Something is bound to happen that will make him realize that I'm no good for him. . .No. Stop thinking like that. Everything will be fine. Matt promised and so far he hasn't broken a promise to me. I am still alive, my father can't hurt me, and he hasn't beaten me even when we are alone._

Those thoughts kept Elisabeth rooted in her place while she listened to Matt in the other room puttering around, making her sandwich.

When Matt came back in the room, he paused with a look of surprise on his face, followed closely by a look of self disgust.

"Hey, you don't have to stand all the time. It's okay for you to sit on the couch or chairs, if you prefer. I won't bite," Matt told Elisabeth. Deciding to take yet another leap of faith, Elisabeth walked across the room to the chair that was in the corner nearest to the doorway. Even if she was going to trust Matt, that didn't mean that she was going to be reckless about it.

Matt just stood in the doorway to the kitchen and watched with a sad look in his eyes. But he seemed to understand what she needed and just moved the coffee table over so that Elisabeth had a table to eat on. Then he placed the plate at one end and pushed gently so that it slid over to where Elisabeth sat.

*******Matt POV*******

Matt knew better than to try and crowd Elisabeth, especially when food was involved. He was sure that she was going to be protective over it and even if she was sitting and seemed to trust him, all bets were off with food.

Pushing the food over to her seemed to be the best thing he could've done. Elisabeth's eyes got just a little brighter, both at the fact that he understood what she needed and the fact that he followed through with his latest promise.

Matt felt a glow of happiness at the sight of Elisabeth eating. Not only was she trying to overcome her fears, but she was also letting him help. Everything Elisabeth did surprised Matt and continually challenged all of his thoughts about what an abused child should act like. What he acted like.

Being around Elisabeth was making Matt realize that maybe he didn't handle his abuse very well. With everything Elisabeth went through, she was still reacting better and less violently than Matt himself had when he was growing up and after he was rescued from his own hell.

Matt shook his head, dislodging his negative thoughts. He decided that when he started Elisabeth in therapy, he'd go and visit his own therapist from when he was younger. Matt was close to Dr. Steve. When he was a child, he had had to call his father 'Mr. Casey', so his therapist helped him break out of his subservient nature by having Matt call him by his first name, but Matt couldn't bring himself to show that kind of disrespect. So they compromised.

_Dr. Steve was amazing. Maybe he would be the best person to help Elisabeth. Her issues are very similar to what mine were, and look where I am now. He just might be the person to break through Elisabeth's walls, _Matt was torn from his thoughts when Elisabeth announced that she was done eating.

"Okay. I'll take care of the dishes. It's getting pretty late, do you want to go to bed? I can show you your room now, if you want?" Matt was unsure of what to do now, but he was right, it was getting late. It was almost 10:00 pm. Elisabeth needed all the sleep she could get to help heal from the fire and the past abuse.

"Okay, if you don't mind. . ." Elisabeth hesitantly answered.

"It's no problem. Let me just put this plate by the sink and then I can give you grand tour."

Matt made a mental note on the way to the kitchen to call Dr. Steve as soon as possible. Which reminded him that he needed to call a pediatrician, his dentist and any other doctor he could possibly need. And Elisabeth had to be tested to see where she was at in school.

Matt knew the next few days were going to be busy and exhausting. He was prepared to do it for the little girl waiting in the other room who stole his heart.

**Hey, sorry for the wait. No excuses again, but updates should be more frequent since I got my own computer now, so I can write whenever I want. Reviews on what you guys want to read would be great in motivating me to keep writing. No pressure. Sorry it's so short.**


	10. Chapter 10

*******Elisabeth POV******

After Matt led Elisabeth through his townhouse, he showed her the bedroom that he made up for her while she was in the hospital.

"Here it is, the grand finale. This will be your room for whenever you are at my house, be it days from now or years, you will always have a room here with me," Matt said.

Elisabeth looked around the room. It was amazing. Never before had she ever had something so nice that she could call her own. She had a bed, a dresser, a desk, a bookcase, and even a toy chest for her things!

"Wow Matt! This is. . .this rocks. How can I repay you? I mean, you didn't have to do all this for me. I would've been fine with just a bed and maybe a box or two for my clothes, you didn't have to go and spend this much money on me."

"Oh, no, honey. I wanted to go and get this for you. Think of it as all the birthdays and Christmases I missed."

"Um, actually, I'm, uh, Jewish. . ." Elisabeth hoped that this wasn't a dealbreaker with Matt. Some people, Elisabeth knew, weren't very open about religions other than their own, but being Jewish was something that Elisabeth was extremely proud of.

"Oh, that's fine. I can look up any temples that are nearby that we can join. Will you help me learn all the holidays and traditions that I will need to know?"

Elisabeth was amazed. Was Matt really offering to join a temple for her? Could she trust that this was real and not a dream? She wasn't sure.

"Uh, sure. I guess I can tell you some stuff. Were you serious about joining a congregation? Cause that would be cool."

"Sure, sweetpea. Anything to make you feel happy and welcome here."

******Matt POV*****

The look on Elisabeth's face when Matt showed her the room was both heart breaking and uplifting. He, Matthew Casey, the screw up of his family, was doing something so good and right for this little girl who had stolen his heart when he wasn't looking.

When Elisabeth offered to repay him for the hastily put together room, Matt wanted to go destroy something. Even he had had a room when he was growing up. Granted, he had to share, but he still had a bed and a place to sleep.

Trying to reassure Elisabeth uncovered another detail about the wonderful child who tried so hard to please everyone. She was Jewish. Matt wasn't sure why she thought that would be a deal-breaker, so he tried to make her feel more comfortable about telling him things by acting like it was no big deal (which it wasn't) and offering to join a temple with her.

After the heart to heart about being supportive in everything that Elisabeth wants to do or is important to her, we went down for dinner. Matt didn't feel like cooking so he decided to introduce Elisabeth to the wonders of Chinese food.

"What would you like? Moo shu, lo mein, orange chicken? It's up to you," Matt decided to let Elisabeth have a choice because of how little she got to choose in her former life.

"Uh, I don't know. What's good? What do you recommend?" Elisabeth hesitated to give a full answer, and Matt understood the more he thought about it.

"How about we get a little bit of everything and save some for tomorrow if we want? That way you can try a little bit of everything,"

Elisabeth looked like she was about to start crying. She jumped up from her seat at the table that she had sat down in when they got to the kitchen and ran over to Matt, grabbing him around the waist and buried her face in his chest.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Elisabeth kept repeating. Matt was confused. Why was Elisabeth so thankful? It couldn't just be the fact that he was willing to get a few different dishes from a Chinese place. Even Matt had had Chinese food growing up.

"It's no problem, Lizzie. I just want you to be happy and healthy. Like you deserve, like I never was. Trust me, this is as much for me as it is for you. This is a way for me to get back at my dad. To tell him that I matter to someone and that I am needed as more than a meat sack at work. To prove that I was justified in. . .shooting him to save myself and my sister." Elisabeth took a step back with a weird look on her face.

"Why'd you call me Lizzie?" She asked, "My name is Elisabeth," Matt just stared at her and shook his head.

"Lizzie is a common nickname for Elisabeth. If you don't like it I don't have to call you that. I just thought it would be something that would help you feel more at home. I want you to get used to me and being in this house."

Elisabeth just shook while Matt held her. Never before had she felt such safety and concern about her well-being. They were feelings that she never wanted to lose.

And after so long of being called "girl" or "whore", she finally got what she felt that every other girl got: a nickname that showed the love someone has for her, of all people.

**A/N: Hey guys, so I think this would be a good place to stop the story, mostly because I am losing focus and motivation to continue it and didn't want to just leave it hanging (I hate when that happens), so sorry it was a quick end, a little sappy, but it'll do. I hope you guys enjoyed reading it :)**


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